Chapter 30: Amino Acid Degradation and the Urea Cycle Flashcards
What is a ketogenic amino acid?
Amino acid carbon skeleton converted to acetyl CoA or acetoacetate
What is a glucogenic amino acid?
- Carbon skeletons converted to pyruvate, alpha-ketoglutarate, succinyl-CoA, fumarate or oxaloacetate
- Amino acids finally converted to glucose through gluconeogenesis
Amino acids are first used to build new _____. Those not needed for that are catabolized to make use of their _____.
- New proteins
- Make use of their nitrogen and carbon skeletons
Amino acid degradation primarily occurs in the _____.
Liver
First step is often removal of the alpha-amino group to generate _____.
Ammonia
After generation of ammonia, the carbon chains are altered for entry into _____.
Central pathways of carbon metabolism
Amino acids are made of _____ and _____.
Amine group and carboxylic group
What are the 3 key reactions of disposal of amino acids nitrogen?
- Transamination reactions
- Deamination reactions
- Glutamine Synthesis
The exchange of the NH2 group with =O group on another molecule is considered to be…
Transamination
The first key reaction of disposal of amino groups results in the following reaction:
Amino acid + Keto acid –> Keto acid + Amino acid
- Transamination
- One becomes the other
What catalyzes the transfer of the alpha-amino group of aspartate to alpha-ketoglutarate?
Aspartate transaminase
There are only a few keto acid acceptors. What is the most used?
Alpha-ketoglutarate
The second key reaction of disposal of amino groups has two parts:
Deamination
-
Oxidative deamination - aerobic conditions
- Catalyzed by glutamate dehydrogenase
- Important in liver where it releases ammonia for urea synthesis
-
Hydrolytic deamination
- Catalyzed by glutaminase and asparaginase
The third key reaction of disposal amino groups:
Glutamine Synthetase
NH3 –> Glutamate –> Glutamine
Used as a carrier of ammonia in most tissue
Glutamine
Used as a carrier in muscles
Alanine
What is the 1st step in amino acid degradation?
Nitrogen removal
Some amino acids can be _____ deaminated.
Directly
Removal of ammonium from most amino acids involves two steps:
- Aminotransferases (transaminases) transfer amino groups from an amino acid to alpha-ketoglutarate to generate glutamate
- Glutamate dehydrogenase, a mitochondrial enzyme, releases NH4+ in the oxidative deamination of glutamate
Peripheral tissues transport nitrogen to the _____.
Liver
Nitrogen can also be transported as _____ formed from glutamate by glutamine synthetase
Glutamine
Ammonia is toxic and needs…
To be excreted
What happens to excess ammonia?
Urea Cycle
What three molecules come into the urea cycle?
Ammonia and CO2 and Aspartate